Comparing Love In Shakespeare's Romeo And Juliet

The way one chooses to use anything can be immensely powerful, with positive or negative effects on his or her surroundings. Friar Laurence, in Romeo and Juliet, wisely notes this fact. One example of this is how love affects different characters in the story. The Nurse loves Juliet to no end as if Juliet were her own daughter. This way, Juliet has the mother figure her biological mother is incapable of being, and receives the care that every child craves. The Nurse is willing to deliver materials for Juliet’s secret wedding, too. The Nurse says, “Hie you to church; I must another way, / To fetch a ladder, by the which your love / Must climb a bird’s nest soon when it is dark” (Shakespeare 2.5.71-73). Here, love is given to Juliet in a manner

that helps her thrive. On the other hand, love can ruin a person as well, as it does with Romeo.

First, we see him completely depressed, with seemingly no hope of recovery after his rejection by Rosaline. He says, “Why, such is love’s transgression. / Griefs of mine own lie heavy in my breast,” (Shakespeare 1.1.179). Then after he falls in love with Juliet, who marries him, one sees the forbidden love slowly throw their lives into a spiral of disaster. It ends, of course, with suicide by them both. That is love at its worst, and shows that something as powerful as love is not to be toyed with, lest it ruin a person. I also have plenty of experience with something used for good or bad. I use my words in a lot of different ways. Personally. I have lifted up several people from something they are sad about, but I have also angrily said terrible things to people that really didn’t deserve it. A friend of mine who is not at Adams recently went through a breakup. After asking her a few questions about the guy, I showed her why she was right to end the relationship and how it was hurting her more than helping. On the contrary, I have made people feel bad about themselves and have said things I regret. Just the day before at lunch, I made a snarky comment to someone who didn’t say anything to

me. I apologized, but the words had come out. So all in all, one can see that whether something is in real life or fiction, and whether it is tangible or intangible, it can be used in both good and bad ways.